Gainesville Moves to the Innovation District

As the Senior Vice President of the Gainesville office for Colliers, Dan leads the firm's presence in Alachua County and the surrounding sub-markets by providing commercial real estate solutions for his clients. His team specializes in commercial and land transactions (sales & leasing) including office, retail, industrial, and multi-family. With well over 100 years of combined local knowledge and service, they strive to continuously raise the bar for their clientele. 

Prior to joining Colliers International, Dan served as Vice President of the Commercial and Land Division at an independent firm in Gainesville where he was a partner in The Drotos Ryals Group. His team has successfully transacted over $1 billion in local (Alachua County) commercial real estate. Dan holds both a Master of Science in Real Estate (MSRE) and Master of Building Construction (MBC) from the University of Florida along with multiple professional designations, including Certified Commercial Investment Member (CCIM) and Society of Industrial and Office Realtors (SIOR). He also also serves in several industry, civic, and non-profit organizations such as: The Urban Land Institute, Ronald McDonald House of North Central Florida, First Federal Bank of  Florida, United Way, and Leadership Gainesville.

Rory graduated from the University of Florida with a degree in civil engineering and has spent the past 35 years in Gainesville as a professional consultant in the land-development industry. Shortly following his graduation, Rory founded CHW Professional Consultants. Serving the company for the last 30 years, Rory’s roles shifted from Vice to President, to CEO and later to Founder. Under Rory’s leadership, the company grew from 13 employees to 85 employees and increased its gross revenue to well over $10 million.

 As a professional engineer, Rory has worked on thousands of projects within Alachua County and the southern United States. Having worked with numerous owners and developers on single-family, multi- family, commercial, retail, industrial and institutional uses, Rory has discovered a uniqueness to each property and project after having worked in such a diverse market of land development. Rory’s engagement and leadership doesn’t stop there, he is well known in the Gainesville community for his roles in many different organizations, some of which include Rotary club of Gainesville Sunrise (President), Climb for Cancer Foundation (Board Member), Builders Association of North Central Florida (BANCF) (past Associate Vice-President), American Heart Association (2018 Heart Walk Chair) and Gainesville Chamber of Commerce (Board Member since 2013, Chair of The Board 2017, currently Immediate Past-Chair).

Lauren, being born and raised in Gainesville, is extremely familiar with Gainesville and its surrounding areas. She graduated with an Associate Degree in Psychology from Santa Fe College. However, Lauren soon realized her true passion in real estate and has not looked back since. 

Lauren continuously demonstrates her value as a commercial real estate professional in Gainesville and brings top customer service to her clients. Aside from her in-depth knowledge of the Gainesville area and insight into the commercial real estate market, Lauren has a firm understanding of landlord and tenant requirements and has built a sound network of both landlord and tenant client relationships. These attributes help her meet the needs of her clients in a timely and efficient manner. Lauren’s attention to detail, communication skills and creative solutions have served her well to become a well-respected member of the GNV Commercial Advisory Team. She continues to gain a broad range of experience in commercial real estate, including landlord representation, tenant representation, lease negotiations, investment properties, and corporate real estate projects.

Born and raised in Jacksonville, Florida, Bennett moved to Gainesville, Florida where he graduated from the University of Florida with a bachelors degree in Food and Resource Economics with a specialization in business management and marketing. Upon Graduating from the University of Florida in 2017, Bennett joined a local boutique real estate firm specializing in both residential and commercial sales and leasing. Prior to joining Colliers International in 2020, Bennett was an associate with Avison Young specializing in both landlord and tenant representation for retail, office, and industrial clients.

Bennett brings to colliers both the managerial and marketing skills needed in any given real estate transaction, but also  the personal skills that are often needed to get a transaction successfully to the finish line leaving all parties involved satisfied. 

Jon C. Thomas II is an Associate with Colliers International. He has experience in hotel, investment, and land sales in North Florida.

Jon’s commercial real estate experiences include Associate at Avison & Young in Gainesville and Associate Advisor with SVN | SouthLand Commercial.

Prior to joining the commercial real estate industry, Jon was the Vice President of Marketing for Thomas-Pierce & Company, a leading succession planning firm, which has completed more than $2 billion in small and medium size business transactions since 1986.